Exhibitions

On 26 April 1986, the Chernobyl disaster shook the world. A radioactive cloud was released from reactor No. 4 into the atmosphere and spread across all of Europe. 

An exclusion zone was declared, an area within a radius of 30 km surrounding the nuclear power plant. In the meantime nature has quietly and persistently reclaimed the deserted area. Some artists are observing this development more closely.

The American photographer Richard Sharum casts an eye over areas of American society where the myth of the 'American Dream' is beginning to crumble. Avoiding typical clichés, his black-and-white photographs are depicting individual realities of life, filled with vulnerability, resistance, and silent dignity. His imagery is quiet and accessible, without being idealising or exposing - always characterised by respectful attentiveness to the people he photographs.

The portrayal of the Wild West is still characterised by the romanticised image of white cowboys. This stereotype does not exactly correspond with real life. A quarter of the cowboys were African Americans, who had a considerable impact on this legendary period of American history. Yet Hollywood created a myth of only white western heroes, often based on Black American models. In other words the significance of the Black community is being ignored when it comes to the developments in US history. Due to this whitewashing hardly anybody knows about the existences of Black Cowboys. 

The oldest preserved photograph in the world was taken in 1826 in Saint-Loup-de-Varennes. Joseph Nicéphore Niépce exposed his camera to the sunlight shining through the window in his study from the patio for 8 hours, and captured the first photographic picture in history. A rather unspectacular  motif marking the birth of photography. For Stadthaus Ulm, focussing mainly on photography exhibitions, this anniversary is the perfect occasion for celebrating this historic moment in the course of this year.

How do young documentary photographers see Europe? The Hamburg-based artist Peter Bialobrzeski invited some of them to present their view of today's world. They are raising questions affecting all of us: topics like climate change and pollution, social justice, the migration policy crisis, and the changing world order. 
The artists are from Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Poland, Hungary, Great Britain, Georgia, and Siberia. Some of them are living in Berlin, and a few of them are working in collectives.

Radio Garden is an interactive map of the world featuring radio stations from all over the world. Since late 2016 it has been possible to listen in on currently 7877 radio stations from 159 countries - no matter how great the distance between listener and sender. There exist no geographical or man-made borders for Radio Garden

If you ascend the stairs to the first floor at the Stadthaus, you will encounter two bronze busts. The effigies of Hans and Sophie Scholl. The siblings from Ulm were members of the resistance group Die Weiße Rose (The White Rose), fighting National Socialism. They were sentenced to death and executed at Munich-Stadelheim prison on 22 February 1943. 

The Minster View streams part of a 180° view from a webcam, installed on top of the Ulm Minster. Enjoy the panoramic view you usually only get, if you climb the steeple.